The Iran war may be fought primarily remotely via the air, but its strategic outcome is increasingly being decided at sea.
The latest strikes and counterstrikes have clarified rather than altered that central fact. Washington may escalate through a ground intervention, wider attacks on Iran’s critical infrastructure, or a strike against the deeply buried nuclear-linked complex at Pickaxe Mountain in Isfahan province.
Each option could inflict further damage and expand the war. None, however, is likely to eliminate Iran’s distributed maritime architecture or make the Strait of Hormuz strategically irrelevant.